Media centre

Friday 8 Nov 2019

Railway disruption in Yorkshire set to continue due to heavy flooding

Region & Route:

Eastern

Network Rail and train operators are urging passengers to continue to check before travelling as flooding continues to halt some services across Yorkshire.

Some flood-hit routes have now reopened but railway disruption, particularly in and around Sheffield, is set to continue over the weekend, with Network Rail and train operators urging passengers to plan ahead.

The routes between Sheffield and Doncaster, including via Rotherham, and Sheffield and Goole are most heavily affected. Network Rail engineers need to wait for the water levels to drop before they can carry out work to reopen the railway in these areas.

Due to the high volume of water, passengers are being warned that these routes may continue to be disrupted next week, so are advised to check before travelling via National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator over the weekend and on Monday morning.

Some flood-hit routes have now reopened after teams from Network Rail worked to pump away water and carry out track inspections, including the lines between Todmorden and Hebden Bridge, Sheffield and Huddersfield and Sheffield and Leeds. The lines between Leeds and Ilkley and Ilkley and Bradford Forster Square have also reopened after teams worked to remove a tree which had fallen onto the railway. Services between Sheffield, Gainsborough and Lincoln are expected to resume tomorrow (Saturday, 9 November).

Matt Rice, Route Director for Network Rail’s North and East Route, said: “Yorkshire has experienced extremely heavy rainfall over the last 24 hours and this has had a severe impact on the railway.

“We recognise that this has been a difficult day for passengers and we would like to reassure those who had to travel that we are doing all we can to reopen the railway as quickly as possible.

“Our teams have been working non-stop to clear water, inspect track and get services moving where safe to do so. This work will continue, however in some areas, we need to wait for water levels to drop before this can take place.

“We strongly advise passengers to check their journeys over the weekend and into early next week. This can be done via National Rail Enquiries or with train operators.”

ENDS